The First Move
by Marie Tomas
Summary: Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood have had a crush on each other from the moment they first met. At the advice of Magnus's close friends and Alec's siblings, they both decide that they should be the one to make the first move and ask the other out. Surely nothing can go wrong, right?
1. Chapter 1

**Notes: **A Shadowhunters Malec AU. Featuring lawyer Alec, fashion designer Magnus and a couple of awkward and hilarious attempts to ask each other out.

* * *

**The First Move**

* * *

"Magnus, you have to do something about this…"

Magnus looked up from his cup of coffee with a raised eyebrow. "Huh?" he asked his two best friends, Catarina and Ragnor, who were sitting directly opposite him at the local coffee shop where the three of them had decided to meet, in celebration of a rare Friday afternoon off work for them all.

After he spoke, Magnus shook his head in frustration. His question had sounded nowhere near as articulate as he would have liked. Lately, he hadn't quite been as graceful or as well-spoken as usual. Although he hated to admit it, Magnus was fairly certain that his recent lack of eloquence could be traced back to the moment that a certain tall, dark and handsome man had walked into his life only a couple of months ago...

In fact, last weekend, Magnus remembered that he had been standing outside on his balcony, completely lost in his own thoughts even though he'd invited Catarina and Ragnor over for drinks, and incapable of keeping the conversation flowing along with the wine. "What are you thinking about?" Catarina had asked him with a touch of concern in her voice. And Magnus, caught off guard, had replied, "Alec Lightwood," without even thinking about it, which meant that he'd had to endure an evening of knowing smirks and gentle mockery from his two best friends.

Right now, Catarina was rolling her eyes at him; it was almost as though she believed that Magnus knew exactly what she was talking about and was just using avoidance tactics. Which, Magnus reasoned, was probably true.

"You have to do something about your…crush," Catarina replied, apparently deciding to spell it out directly for him.

Magnus was about to say something in protest, but in the end, he decided it would be pointless-Catarina and Ragnor knew him better than anyone, and there would be no use denying his feelings for Alec to them.

In the end, he settled on sighing dramatically as he placed his coffee cup back down on the table. "I know, I know," he said, with a flourish of his hand, for added effect.

Although Magnus had sworn off love for the foreseeable future after a particularly bad breakup only a year ago, since he'd met Alec, he'd really started to question this vow he'd made to close off his heart.

In fact, he found himself thinking about Alec all the time. Alec, who was so kind, so caring, so selfless. Not to mention handsome. It seemed that Magnus's heart was rather fond of him.

Perhaps Catarina was right. Maybe he should take action. Magnus had seen the way that men checked Alec out whenever he was at parties or at clubs with the Lightwoods. He had noticed the way that Alec looked handsome men up and down in return whenever he thought that nobody was looking. If Magnus didn't do…something soon, then it would only be a matter of time before another man asked Alec out instead, and Magnus would lose his chance.

Besides, Magnus had recently found out that his ex, Camille was back in town. Only yesterday, she'd sent him a message, asking if Magnus wanted to meet her for drinks tonight. She'd only made the suggestion look like a casual one, but Magnus knew what would happen if he agreed to meet with her; Camille seemed to find her way back into his life whenever Magnus was feeling particularly lonely, and it would only be a matter of time before he ended up back in her arms, the two of them agreeing to 'give things another go' and returning to their not-so-healthy-sort-of-relationship before they inevitably broke up all over again.

"How about doing something about this today?" Ragnor suggested, looking completely serious as his words snapped Magnus back into the present moment.

Magnus couldn't help feeling a prickle of nerves at the suggestion. It was one thing to talk hypothetically about asking Alec out (Magnus had even imagined the scenario several times in his secret thoughts), but it was another thing entirely to actually make _real_ plans to do it. Plans that would involve Magnus being vulnerable in front of someone he barely knew; plans that would have to be carried out in the near future.

Unfortunately, Catarina seemed to agree with Ragnor. "Alec only works a couple of blocks away from here, right?" she asked Magnus, ignoring Magnus's expression of wide-eyed horror.

"Oh no," Magnus muttered into his coffee cup, before he threw a warning glance in Catarina's direction.

The thought of showing up at Alec's work-the _Lightwood family's _law company-and asking Alec out filled him with dread.

This feeling of fear at the thought of asking a handsome man out on a date was completely new to Magnus. After all, when it came to flirting and dating, Magnus considered himself to be something of an expert. He'd never struggled before to approach men and women at bars and ask them out on dates. He wasn't shy, not when it came to kissing and hooking up, and he was fairly confident in his conviction that by now, he knew his way around the bedroom. He'd even had several serious relationships over the past few years.

And yet, whenever he was around Alec, Magnus felt like an awkward, nervous teenager with a crush. What was it about Alexander Lightwood that made him feel that way?

"I-I can't," Magnus told his two friends, his head bowed, hating how vulnerable he sounded.

Catarina, however, didn't seem to be taking his nerves seriously. "It's not like it's your first time doing this," she told him with a shrug.

"True," Magnus replied, making a big show of stirring his coffee slowly with a spoon so he could avoid looking Catarina and Ragnor in the eye.

He supposed that Catarina had a point. She would know better than anyone about Magnus's dating history, after all the stories that Magnus had told her over the past few years whenever they both drank a few too many glasses of wine. "But still," he shrugged, feeling that prickle of nerves all over again, "it's not so easy, this time..."

Catarina and Ragnor shared a look, and Magnus guessed that they had finally picked up on his fear about doing this.

"What if he's not interested?" Magnus asked them as he ran a hand nervously over his ear, deciding that he might as well just go all out in voicing his fears now.

Anyway, he felt like this concern was a genuine one. Sure, Alec seemed to be into guys, and he acted a little nervous around Magnus sometimes, blushing whenever Magnus gave him a compliment, but Magnus had no actual proof that Alec was into _him_.

"You're _Magnus Bane_!" said Catarina with a grin, like this explained everything.

Ragnor nodded in agreement. "Do what you do best," he said, by way of advice.

"Make the first move!" added Catarina.

Magnus might have made the first move many times before, but this was different; he wasn't sure _how_ it was different, exactly, or whether he could even explain it to his friends, but it was.

After a little more gentle persuasion from his friends, and a lot of advice as to how he could go about this, it was Ragnor who leaned in with one of his typically philosophical comments: "Magnus," he said, his expression solemn, serious, "when love comes into your life, you must do everything in your power to fight for it…"

Magnus fought off a blush at Ragnor's use of the word 'love', but finally, with a dramatic sigh, he found himself agreeing to at least try to ask Alec out on a date.

_How hard can this be?_ he asked himself, even as his heart rate started to pick up and he felt his hands begin to shake. He had done this so many times, after all, and, if he went to Alec's work and asked him out right now, he could get it out the way, without having to deal with the typical audience and crowd they would have around them if Magnus waited until the next time he saw Alec at a bar to do this.

No, this way was so much easier, more private, more relaxed, more intimate.

What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

After he'd headed out of the coffee shop, promising his friends that he would text them later to let them know how everything went, Magnus headed in the direction of the law firm where Alec worked, trying to ignore the fact that his heart was pounding against his chest.

As he walked, concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, Magnus thought about all the moments he'd shared with Alec since they'd first been introduced only weeks ago…

He thought about the first night they'd met, at a nightclub in the city called Pandemonium. Magnus had already known Alec's siblings, Izzy and Jace, for a little while through the New York party scene, but up until that night, he hadn't yet met Alec Lightwood.

And then Alec had walked right through the club's main doors, complaining loudly to Izzy about having to be there in the first place, and still somehow looking like the most handsome man that Magnus had ever met, in spite of his frown, dressed all in black in clothes that perfectly complemented his body, and Magnus had fallen in lust at first sight.

At first, he'd felt a little intimidated by Alec, as Izzy's older brother had seemed a little cold, never talking much, keeping his distance from the group, and constantly frowning and making sarcastic comments, but then Magnus had gotten to know him a little better and he'd worked out that Alec wasn't unkind at all; he was just a little shy.

He remembered how he'd had a particularly disastrous day only a few weekends ago, when his kitchen had flooded just before Catarina and Ragnor were due to come over for dinner, and Izzy had sent Alec over to help after Magnus had complained loudly to her over the phone for several minutes.

Magnus hadn't even been sure how Alec could help, but it had turned out that Alec was something of a handyman when it came to repairs, because he'd arrived at Magnus's loft, rolled up his sleeves and headed into the kitchen as though he did that kind of thing all the time, and the flooding had stopped in a matter of minutes. All the while, Magnus had tried to ignore several not-so-innocent fantasies that had appeared in his mind as he watched Alec work.

And then Alec had stayed by Magnus's side for the rest of the evening, helping Magnus to clean up, and helping Magnus to get dinner ready, not talking very much but offering the occasional smile and reassuring pat on the shoulder, and Magnus had seen a whole other side of Alec Lightwood.

After that, Alec had started to hang out at Magnus's Brooklyn loft quite often, helping Magnus out with random tasks or sometimes just sharing conversations with Magnus about his day, or even telling the occasional story about some aspect of his life. Magnus had the feeling that Alec didn't open up to people very often, and he was rather flattered that Alec seemed to like spending time with him and sharing conversations.

Magnus could clearly remember a Saturday afternoon only a couple of weeks ago, when he'd been having a particularly bad day. It was the anniversary of his mother's death, and he'd been so caught up in his memories, even crying a little during the day, that he'd barely been thinking straight when he'd heard a knock on the door and gone to answer it, assuming it would be one of his best friends. To his utter mortification, Alec had been standing on the other side of the door, looking adorable dressed in a green sweater, with a confused frown that quickly changed to an expression of concern as he took in the look on Magnus's face.

Somehow, Magnus had ended up spending the afternoon sobbing in Alec's arms, with Alec holding him close, muttering words of reassurance and telling him that everything was going to be okay.

As upsetting and embarrassing as the afternoon had been, Magnus had also been very aware of just how…nice it felt to be held by Alec; he'd felt like he could get used to it.

Alec had even been apologetic about being the only person around to comfort Magnus-he'd whispered something about how he was sure that Magnus would have preferred to have his close friends there, and how he wasn't very good at this, and how he hoped he'd been able to offer some comfort all the same.

Magnus had smiled at him and thanked him, but he hadn't been brave enough to tell Alec that there was no one else he'd rather have been with that afternoon. In that moment, Magnus had realised that this feelings for Alec ran much deeper than lust.

* * *

All too soon, Magnus arrived at the Lightwoods' law firm. He paused for a moment, taking everything in. The building was tall, imposing, and the family emblem on the glass doors that led into the building suggested that the Lightwoods meant business.

Magnus took a few deep breaths. It took several more minutes before he summoned the courage to walk through the doors.

The interior of the building was all wooden floors, hi-tech computers and mahogany desks, but Magnus also noted that the inside of the building was warmer, less intimidating than the outside.

As Magnus walked through the lobby, several of Alec's colleagues greeted him with polite smiles. They didn't look surprised to see him there. Magnus worked for a major fashion company in Brooklyn, and his company had worked with the Lightwoods' before, hiring them to help with various contracts and the legal documents required for events in the city. Magnus guessed that everyone simply thought he was here on his company's behalf this afternoon; here for business, rather than pleasure.

Several large mirrors lined the left-hand wall of the lobby. Magnus paused to take in his reflection.

Today, he had dressed in dark jeans with a little glitter, and a black shirt with the top buttons deliberately left unfastened. There were several dark blue highlights in his hair, and although he hadn't put much jewellery on today, there were a few rings on his fingers. He'd also applied his usual eyeliner before he met Catarina and Ragnor at the coffee shop. He sighed to himself as he turned away from the mirror. It wasn't that he looked bad, but he knew that he would have added a touch more glitter and extravagance if he'd had more time to prepare for what he was about to do.

After stopping to take a couple more deep breaths, Magnus continued to walk further into the building.

He noticed that Isabelle Lightwood was sitting behind the main desk in the lobby.

In spite of his nerves, Magnus couldn't help feeling happy to see her. He considered Izzy to be one of his closest friends, and he was glad that she was here today-a friendly face in a sea of strangers.

"Magnus!" she greeted him with a smile the moment she caught sight of him.

"Isabelle," Magnus greeted her with a smile of his own. He could only hope that his voice wasn't shaking as he spoke.

"Are you here to see Alec?" Izzy asked him with another grin, although there was definitely something playful in her expression now. Magnus had a sneaking suspicion that she had worked out exactly why he was here this afternoon.

"Yes," Magnus replied, trying to sound as dignified as possible as he fought off a blush at the mention of Alec's name.

It was only now that he was here that Magnus was starting to question whether this really was such a good idea-after all, showing up at someone's workplace in the middle of the afternoon to ask them out for drinks wasn't exactly the height of professionalism. And Alec was shy, and he took his job very seriously, and Magnus didn't know him very well, and he had no idea if Alec felt the same way, and Alec's parents were so overprotective, and Magnus wasn't sure if they liked him very much…

"Well, you know the way…"

The sound of Isabelle's voice snapped Magnus out of his troubled thoughts. She was pointing in the direction of the elevator with a raised eyebrow.

Magnus simply nodded. It was too late to back out now. He had a feeling that Izzy wouldn't let him, even if he tried.

* * *

As the elevator glided smoothly upwards towards the floor where Alec's office was located, Magnus tried to compose himself.

He fixed his hair while looking in the elevator mirror, and then he adjusted his shirt and a couple of his rings while he silently ran through a few of the lines he could use to ask Alec out. Magnus's pick-up lines had generally been successful in the past, but now he wasn't so sure if they would work.

As Magnus got out of the elevator and walked down the hallway towards Alec's office, his legs felt heavier than usual. Every step seemed to require twice the effort. He was also pretty sure that his hands were still shaking.

* * *

Finally, he arrived at his destination.

Alec had left the door to his office open. Magnus paused in the doorway to peer inside.

The large windows behind Alec's desk offered a stunning view of the city skyline, but Magnus could only focus on the handsome man standing behind the desk.

Alec was leaning over, apparently reading a few legal documents that were piled up on the desk. He was still oblivious to Magnus's presence in the doorway.

Alec was dressed simply in black trousers and a white shirt, with several of the top buttons unfastened. It took all of Magnus's strength not to fix his gaze entirely on the bare skin that had been exposed by the open shirt buttons. It was rare to see Alec dressed so casually like this.

Alec's suit jacket and tie seemed to have been discarded on the back of his desk chair at some point during the afternoon.

Magnus's heart continued to beat rapidly against his chest, and his throat felt a little dry, and he felt too hot and too cold at the same time. As he took in the view in front of him, he couldn't help thinking about all the things that he wished Alec Lightwood would do to him on that desk; he was fairly certain that he could even find a few creative uses for Alec's discarded tie…

Magnus blinked rapidly a couple times and shook his head, trying to fight off those more X-rated thoughts. He was here on very serious business, and he had to stay focused.

As he delicately cleared his throat, Magnus attempted to strike his best pose, leaning seductively against the doorframe.

"Alexander," he said, in what he hoped was a sexy and sophisticated tone of voice.

Alec looked a little startled for a moment, but then he looked up from his paperwork and stared right at Magnus, his expression intense.

Magnus took a step into the room, focusing on swaying his hips as he moved. _Just one step, then another,_ he silently told himself. This was actually happening; he could do this…

And that was when he tripped over his own feet and fell right to the floor.

Before he could even think about what had just happened, he heard Alec calling his name, a concerned tone in his voice.

Magnus made an attempt to get back up, but Alec had moved across the room in a flash. "You okay?" he asked, a worried-looking frown on his face as he knelt down next to Magnus.

"I-I'm fine, Alexander," said Magnus, doing his best to sound cool and calm and composed as he tried to fight off a feeling of utter mortification. He could only imagine how ridiculous he'd looked to Alec as he'd fallen into his office. How had the fall even happened? He'd never been that clumsy before. Usually, his movements were smooth and graceful. There hadn't even been anything in his way to trip over! What a mess of an entrance.

"That was graceful," Alec muttered with a half-grin, as though he could read Magnus's thoughts. He looked a little amused now.

"I know, I know," Magnus attempted to joke in return as he tried using one of his typically dramatic flourishes of his hands to emphasise his point. He was sure however, that he had gone bright red with embarrassment.

Magnus couldn't help thinking about all the times that he and Catarina had read extracts from _Fifty Shades of Grey _out loud to one another after a few too many bottles of wine, the two of them laughing mockingly the whole time...and now Magnus had unintentionally gone and recreated one of the scenes from the book! This realisation only made the moment seem even more embarrassing. Catarina would find it hilarious, if she ever found out.

But then Alec's arms were around him, as he was apparently checking Magnus for any sign of injury, and Magnus couldn't think about anything else but the handsome man in front of him. He was rendered temporarily speechless at his close proximity to Alec Lightwood.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Alec asked him, the tone of concern back in his voice.

It was only then that Magnus realised that he hadn't made any effort to move or speak over the past several seconds, as he had instead been staring right at Alec and discreetly leaning into his touch.

Magnus felt like an even bigger idiot. Quickly, he nodded, before he felt himself blushing all over again. All of the X-rated things he had done over the past decade, and it was this moment, right here on the floor with Alec, fully-clothed, that had left him a blushing mess. Magnus could hardly believe it.

"Here, let me help you," said Alec as he reached out a hand to help Magnus up before he led him towards the nearest chair and told him to sit down.

Magnus sighed-as nice as it felt to be held almost protectively by Alec as he helped him across the room, he couldn't help thinking about how this was definitely _not_ how he had imagined this moment would play out.

Whenever he imagined asking Alec out on a date, Magnus was always charming, eloquent, graceful. He worked the room and then walked smoothly up to Alec before he confidently asked him out for drinks, and Alec would always smile and say yes. It seemed that imagination and reality were two very different things.

It also seemed that as usual, Alec was thriving in this let-me-come-to-the-rescue role, because he went and got a glass of water for Magnus, before he knelt down in front of him again, gently brushing away a little dust that seemed to have attached to Magnus's shirt when he hit the floor, looking a lot more confident than usual; yet Alec's willingness to take care of him wasn't offering much comfort to Magnus right now, not after he'd just made a total fool of himself.

Magnus knew he should say what he came here to say, but right now, he could only stare at Alec, feeling completely unprepared for this scenario. Up close, in the awkward silence, he could fully appreciate just how handsome Alec looked-his dark hair was a little messy, but it still looked perfect, and he had more skin on display than usual with his sleeves rolled up and his shirt buttons open, and his eyes were so deep and so expressive, and Alec kept biting his lip in apparent concern as he stared at Magnus, which only made Magnus wish he could kiss those lips of his.

Magnus must have been a little more dazed than he thought by his fall, or maybe he'd drunk too much caffeine today, because he heard himself mutter, "You're beautiful," before he could apply any sort of filter and stop himself, his tone of voice full of wonder as he spoke.

Magnus would have felt mortified all over again at what he'd just said, but surprisingly, Alec blushed bright red, looking equally embarrassed. He stopped what he was doing and ducked his head, as though the comment had taken him by surprise, but Magnus couldn't help noticing the smile that crept to his face as he ducked his head-he looked really pleased with himself; pleased with Magnus's compliment, in spite of his blushes.

Magnus stared at him in amazement. He couldn't help thinking that maybe he was the first person to tell Alec that he was beautiful, although he couldn't imagine how that could be the case. Surely every man who Alec met told him that he was attractive? Surely he had a whole bunch of exes who wished that they'd never broken up with Alec in the first place? And yet there was a hint of inexperience about Alec as he grinned at Magnus's compliment…

Alec shook his head, a smile still on his face, and he opened his mouth as though to say something to negate Magnus's compliment, but then a frown abruptly crossed his face as his eyes fixed on Magnus's right arm. "You're hurt…" he said.

"Huh? Magnus asked him, still feeling a little out of it. For one bizarre moment, he was convinced that Alec was offering some sort of insightful observation on Magnus's inner pain from his past relationships, but then he followed Alec's gaze and he noticed that not only had a part of his shirt sleeve got torn at some point during his fall, but the exposed skin was now bright red.

Magnus wasn't even sure exactly what he'd done, but he was certain that his current mortification was far greater than any pain the 'injury' could cause.

"Alexander, it's nothing; I'm fine," Magnus rushed to explain, trying desperately not to make this situation even more humiliating than it was, but Alec was having none of it.

He mumbled something about a carpet burn, and how the mark could turn into a bruise, and how he would 'take care of it'.

And so Magnus felt like an idiot all over again as Alec set to work attempting to apply some kind of first aid to Magnus's injured arm. He had a feeling that Alec would also have attempted to sew the torn fabric of Magnus's shirt back together too, if Magnus hadn't stopped him.

Magnus could only sit back and close his eyes and think about how his attempts at seducing Alec Lightwood had been a total disaster. In fact, this moment would surely go down in history as Magnus's worst ever attempt at seduction. It would probably appear in some kind of dating guide on what _not_ to do.

It was only as Alec was applying some kind of cold compress to Magnus's arm that a frown crossed his face, followed by what looked like a look of realisation. "Hey, was there uh…was there something you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked Magnus, sounding shy and nervous again now that they were back to normal conversation.

It seemed that he had worked out that Magnus must have had a reason for showing up at his office today.

Magnus opened his mouth to speak, but then he hesitated, taking in the scene around him-Alec was kneeling on the floor next to where Magnus was sitting on a spare office chair, applying a cold compress because Magnus had shown up unannounced at his office and fallen over like an ungraceful idiot and injured himself.

The moment had definitely been lost. Magnus couldn't ask him out for drinks now; not like this; not when he'd made a mess of everything.

"It was nothing, Alexander," said Magnus, attempting to brush off Alec's question with a gentle smile and a wave of his hand-his common method of deflection when questions got a little too personal.

Alec frowned again, apparently not convinced.

"I simply came here to ask if you were going to be at Pandemonium next weekend," Magnus added, thinking quickly, even though he knew that it was a lame question to ask and he probably sounded pretty pathetic right now. He could have asked Alec anytime if he was heading to Pandemonium.

"Um, yeah, of course I'll be there," said Alec slowly as he watched Magnus with a strange expression, "it's Izzy's birthday next weekend…"

_Of course it is…_ Magnus thought to himself with a sigh. Izzy always celebrated her birthday at Pandemonium-she'd told him this already. Perhaps Alec thought that Magnus had hit his head when he fell too, and he was now concerned that Magnus's injuries were worse than he had thought. Just when Magnus had thought that the situation couldn't get any more embarrassing.

Magnus sighed to himself again. He wasn't sure what was worse-his feeling of disappointment, or the thought of having to tell Ragnor and Catarina just how unsuccessful he had been in his attempts to ask Alec out on a date.

He wished that it had been Alec who had attempted to ask _him_ out on a date instead.

Surely Alexander Lightwood would be so much better at this…?


	2. Chapter 2

"Alec, this can't go on; you have to do something about this!"

With a frown, Alec looked up from his beer that he'd only half-drunk. He stared right at his sister, who was sitting opposite him and next to Jace at a table at the local bar where Alec's friend Maia worked, and where Alec had arranged to meet his siblings after work for a Friday evening catch-up.

"Do something about what?" Alec asked Izzy, slowly, carefully; he wasn't sure he going to like her answer.

"Do something about asking out Magnus!" Izzy told him with a smile, looking way too enthusiastic about this.

Alec felt a blush creep to his cheeks, the way it always did whenever Magnus's name was mentioned. He knew that it had been a bad idea, to ask his siblings for relationship advice in the first place. It was bad enough that he'd already had to endure an evening of questions from his sister about why Magnus had showed up at his work earlier in the afternoon.

Izzy had even seemed weirdly disappointed when Alec told her that Magnus had only headed up to Alec's office to ask if he was going to Pandemonium next weekend-although Alec wasn't sure what else Izzy thought that Magnus had been there to ask.

Trying to ignore Izzy's suggestion about asking Magnus out for a few more seconds, Alec practically gulped down the rest of his drink out of nerves.

The truth was that he hadn't been able to stop thinking about Magnus all afternoon. Magnus had looked so beautiful today, leaning against the doorframe in his office, with his eyeliner and his highlights and his open shirt…And then Magnus had for some reason fallen over and Alec had had the opportunity to hold Magnus in his arms for a little while before he helped him up. It had been one of the nicest moments of Alec's life, just getting to hold Magnus like that in a quiet room with no one to disturb them, even though a drunk Jace would probably tell him that that was pretty pathetic, if he ever admitted it out loud.

Alec always thought that Magnus looked beautiful. A part of him wanted to tell Magnus this; he'd wanted to tell him ever since he first met him, but he wasn't sure how Magnus would feel about it. He remembered that several times, Magnus had looked in the mirror before they all headed out to party in the city, and he'd jokingly muttered, "I'm so hot," while his friends Catarina and Ragnor had laughed along with him. Then last weekend, Catarina had been asking Magnus how he'd managed to get so many free drinks at the bar. Magnus had smirked and replied, "Well, it's easy, what with me being so handsome and all…"

But 'beautiful'? Alec wasn't sure if he could say that out loud to Magnus.

Today, Magnus had told Alec that _he_ was beautiful. Sure, Magnus had probably been a little delirious after his fall, and maybe he'd even been a little out of it after what had clearly been a stressful week for him, but still, Alec had been unable to help the smile that crept to his face throughout the afternoon whenever he thought about it.

At one point, late in the afternoon, Alec had been sitting behind his desk, daydreaming about Magnus even though he was meant to be completing a little paperwork in preparation for an upcoming case. He'd looked down at the piece of paper he'd been writing on and noticed that he'd somehow ended up writing Magnus's name in the middle of a heart that he'd sketched while he was supposed to be working. Even now, the memory of it was making him blush.

And now, Izzy and Jace had clearly worked out that he was pining, and they were trying to give him that final push into taking action.

This had been going on for weeks, ever since Alec had first met Magnus.

At the time, Alec hadn't fully understood the reason why he'd blushed when he was introduced to Magnus, and why he hadn't been able to put a sentence together when he was standing close to him, and how he always smiled more when he was around Magnus, in spite of his blushes, but it hadn't taken him long to work out that it had been a crush at first sight.

Recently, Alec had started to think that his feelings ran deeper than a crush. He liked spending time with Magnus, and he found that he was always coming up with pretty lame excuses to head over to Magnus's place at weekends. There was just something so…peaceful about hanging out with Magnus, the two of them drinking tea together as they shared conversations. Alec hardly ever opened up to anyone, and yet he found it easy to talk to Magnus, and to share stories about his life. He trusted Magnus, even though the two of them hadn't known each other for long. He liked it when Magnus opened up to him too, allowing himself to be vulnerable, as Alec had the impression that Magnus hardly ever let his guard down.

Then there had been the afternoon a couple weeks ago, when Magnus had been crying in his arms and Alec had tried to offer him comfort, and it had just felt so…right, to hold Magnus in his arms like that. He _wanted _to be the one to care for him and protect him, even though Magnus acted like he didn't need anyone to look out for him.

Izzy continued to glare at Alec from across the table with her arms folded, and Alec knew that he would have to snap out of his daydreams about Magnus soon and give her some kind of answer.

"I can't," Alec practically snapped at his siblings, before he sighed in defeat and ran a hand nervously through his hair.

He hoped that these two words would somehow manage to convey all of the insecurities that he was secretly feeling, without him having to spell them out-Magnus was so attractive, and so confident, and so independent. Magnus was experienced; he knew exactly what he was doing when it came to relationships, while Alec had no experience at all-it had taken him years to even come out; his parents hadn't exactly been the most tolerant of people.

Why would Magnus even want him?

Could he really put himself out there like that, only to risk being rejected?

Izzy and Jace however, didn't seem very sympathetic to Alec's crisis of confidence…

"Alec, you can do this!" Izzy insisted as she took another sip of her cocktail.

"Dude, Magnus totally likes you!" Jace told him as he took a sip from his bottle of beer.

Alec blushed all over again. This was like being back in middle school and discussing first crushes with friends. Alec was kind of glad he'd avoided all of that stuff at school. Now though, it seemed like there was no escaping it-he'd already had to endure months of this from Izzy and her boyfriend Simon, and Jace and his girlfriend Clary.

Alec continued to protest, insisting that he couldn't do this. Unfortunately, it was Izzy who finally delivered the most convincing argument…

"Alec," she sighed, "Magnus won't be single forever…"

Alec felt a twinge of something that he was sure wasn't nerves at her words. What she was saying was true, and they all knew it.

Alec knew that Magnus's ex, Camille was back in town. He'd worked out that Magnus and Camille had some kind of complicated history between them. The thought of Magnus getting back together with Camille made him feel more than a little heartbroken.

Last Friday night, Camille had been drinking at this same bar, bragging loudly to anyone who would listen about how she was going to ask Magnus out for drinks sometime soon.

Alec hadn't even realised that the anger had been written all over his face until his sister had whispered, "Alec, calm down," with an uncharacteristically nervous expression on her face. Alec had looked down and realised that he'd been gripping the table tight as Camille spoke. The feeling of jealousy had been almost unbearable.

"Fine," Alec sighed, trying to ignore the fact that Izzy and Jace were both grinning at him in triumph, "I'll do it." Magnus couldn't end up with Camille, he just couldn't. Not if there was any possibility that he could end up with Alec. He had to try. He just hoped that he sounded braver than he felt.

As Izzy and Jace launched into a long list of advice on how Alec should go about asking Magnus out, Alec ordered a fresh drink to help calm his nerves. Then, still feeling nervous about what he was about to do, he ordered another drink.

* * *

When Izzy and Jace finally decided to head home for the evening to allow Alec a little alone time so that he could head to Magnus's place, Alec might have promised them that he would head straight to the loft, but in spite of his promise, he _might_ have stayed for yet another drink, just to make sure that his nerves were fully under control.

Unfortunately, this meant that by the time Alec left the bar to head in the direction of Magnus's loft, he was more than a little tipsy.

He could barely remember walking through the streets of Brooklyn to get to the apartment block, and by the time a helpful neighbour let him into the building (probably assuming that Alec lived there after all the times he'd visited Magnus over the past couple months), everything was looking a little too bright, and the walls were starting to spin a little.

Alec headed upwards in the direction of Magnus's apartment, tripping over on a few of the stairs along the way.

When he finally arrived on Magnus's floor, he had to take a minute to lean against the nearest wall and take a couple deep breaths.

What was he doing? Why was he like this? Why was he such a lightweight?

But he had to keep going; he had already come this far. _Alec, you can do this! _the voices of Izzy and Jace seemed to tell him in his head. _We believe in you!_

Although it felt like a great effort, Alec pushed himself away from the wall. He had only taken a few steps when he paused again and frowned. Which one was Magnus's apartment again? He came here so often, but now his alcohol intake was making him feel a little drowsy and confused. He was sure Magnus's front door was around here somewhere…

Alec walked up and down the hallway a couple of times, but still he couldn't remember Magnus's apartment number.

He was getting a little desperate now. There was only one thing left to do to find him…

"Magnus!" Alec started to shout out as he continued to attempt to walk up and down the hall. "Magnus!" He blinked a couple times in surprise; he hadn't even known he could shout that loud.

He was vaguely aware of a few doors opening, and a few angry shouts from Magnus's neighbours. Alec guessed that the neighbours were a little shocked by the noise-Alec was usually so quiet whenever he was visiting Magnus's loft.

"Alexander?"

Alec turned around and spotted the object of his affections standing in the doorway a few feet away from him. Everything else in the hall looked pretty blurry, but Alec could see Magnus clearly; he guessed that was pretty romantic.

"Magnus! There you are!" he called out in drunken relief as he stumbled towards him.

Up close, Alec could see that Magnus looked incredibly handsome tonight; he was all dressed up in designer jeans and a black-and-white inkblot shirt with the top buttons unfastened, and a necklace around his neck. He was also wearing his rings, and a few earrings, as well as his usual eyeliner, with a little glitter applied to his chest. He looked perfect. Alec felt a little under-dressed in comparison, in a simple black T-shirt and jeans.

"You're so hot," said Alec, unable to stop himself from saying the first thought that came into his head now that he'd had too much to drink. He even felt tears welling up in his eyes as he looked Magnus up and down. He wasn't sure if it was normal to get emotional over a guy's good looks-maybe it was just the alcohol talking, but Alec wasn't sure.

"Alexander, whatever's the matter with you?" he heard Magnus ask him. Magnus seemed to be watching him with a raised eyebrow and folded arms, and there was definitely a hint of concern, or maybe even worry in his voice.

"I think you should come in," he added, and Alec noticed that Magnus wasn't saying this playfully or flirtatiously; he still sounded a little worried.

* * *

Alec stumbled over the threshold. Maybe he was just doing this wrong; maybe he shouldn't have yelled out Magnus's name or opened with the 'you're-so-hot' line.

Now that he was within the relative privacy of Magnus's loft, he really had to try to get this right…

Magnus was still watching him with a raised eyebrow.

With his mind still feeling a little foggy, Alec went over in his mind all the advice that Izzy and Jace had given him before he came here tonight…

_Tell Magnus how you feel_…Izzy had said.

"Magnus, I love you," Alec blurted out. He wasn't even sure where that line had come from, but as he said it out loud, Alec felt like it was true.

But wait, no, that was too much, too soon. Izzy and Jace had told him to just keep things light, casual. And Magnus was watching him in what appeared to be wide-eyed shock.

He took a couple of unsteady steps towards Magnus as he thought of something different to say to lighten the mood.

_Try saying something romantic_…Jace had suggested.

"Magnus," said Alec, as he placed his hand over his heart and started to recite random romantic lines that he was sure he'd heard in a movie or a TV show, "my light; my love; my heart…"

But no, it didn't sound right; as much as Izzy and Jace liked to quote romantic lines to their partners, Alec knew that it wasn't him; the words didn't feel natural coming from his lips.

Even Magnus looked totally surprised.

_Be direct about what you want_…Izzy had offered as another suggestion.

"Marry me, Magnus," Alec slurred. He was sure that was pretty direct. "No, wait!" he suddenly cut himself off as he held his hands up and swayed a little on the spot. He was venturing into too-much-too-soon territory again. He couldn't just _propose_ to Magnus before he even asked him out on a date! The alcohol was clearly having more of an effect on him than he'd first thought. "Date me first," he continued to slur, "then marry me, if you wanna…"

"Alexander," he heard Magnus say softly to him through his alcohol-induced haze, "I think you'd better sit down…"

"Yes," Alec replied with a sigh, "that sounds like a good idea…"

Magnus led him towards the living room, and somehow, Alec managed to sit down on the couch. He was feeling more than a little drowsy now, but then he reminded himself that he'd come here to ask Magnus out. He was about to say something about going on a date, but it seemed that his total lack of filter was still in place…

"Please don't date Camille," he muttered, sounding totally devastated and hoping that Magnus could see the intensity in his eyes. "I'll take good care of you," he said with a sigh, certain that he'd probably never say this stuff while sober. "I've never done any of this before, but I promise I'll try and be a good boyfriend, for you, if you wanna…"

"Alexander." The sound of Magnus's voice interrupted him. "Maybe you should lie down for a little while?"

"That would be nice," Alec found himself agreeing. His eyelids already felt heavy. He was vaguely aware of the feeling of Magnus running his hands very gently through his hair a couple times, and then Magnus was muttering something about getting Alec a glass of water, but Alec had already moved so that his head was resting on his arms, and he was stretching out on the couch. Before he could drift off to sleep, he heard himself ask a question that he probably should have asked all along: "You, uh…you wanna go for a drink sometime?"

With that, he fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, the sun seemed to be shining brighter than usual.

Alec shook his head in irritation. His head felt a little heavy, and his throat was a little dry. And he was still tired, so tired…

"What time is it?" he grumbled, the way he always did.

He stretched out a little. This wasn't his bed…The blanket that was covering him wasn't his…Why was he still wearing what he'd been wearing at the bar yesterday evening?

Alec blinked rapidly a few times before he opened his eyes. He turned his head a little and spotted Magnus, sitting directly opposite him, watching him intently.

He felt his eyes slowly widen in horror as he tried to sit up a little. Oh no, oh no, oh no…

"Oh, Alexander," said Magnus with a grin, apparently realising that Alec was awake, "what am I going to do with you?"

Suddenly, all of the events of last night came screaming back to Alec. Magnus might have been chuckling to himself, but Alec let out a groan as he laid back down and covered his face with his hands.

Had he really shown up at Magnus's apartment late last night, drunk, and told Magnus that he was hot and declared his love for him? Oh god, he'd even asked Magnus to _marry_ him, after he'd attempted to recite a romantic line from a TV show!

Alec's cheeks felt hot; he was still doing his best to cover his face, but he was sure that even his neck was going bright red.

Magnus had even removed his shoes at some point during the night and covered him with a blanket. This was all so embarrassing!

Oh, and Alec had admitted to Magnus that he'd never dated anyone before, and then he'd begged Magnus not to date Camille-something that hadn't even been any of his business in the first place. Would Magnus think that he'd been totally out of line?

Alec was tempted to hide right under the blanket as every embarrassing line, every word of drunken truth, came back to him. All his life, he'd been so calm, so composed, so in control. And now all of that had shattered in one night.

To make things worse, it dawned on Alec that Magnus was still wearing the same glamorous outfit from last night. Alec wasn't sure what was more mortifying-the fact that he'd stopped Magnus from going out to a party on a Friday night, or the realisation that Magnus must have stayed awake all night to keep an eye on him, no doubt watching Alec with an expression of concern throughout the night.

He'd made a total fool of himself! And the whole time, Magnus had tried to gently cut off his drunken babbling; he'd tried to stop Alec from saying too much last night, and Alec hadn't taken the hint.

Would Magnus think that he was an idiot? Would he think that Alec was too immature to date?

Alec was never drinking again; he couldn't handle his drink; he'd known that this was all a bad idea.

His self-punishing thoughts were interrupted when Magnus started to talk…

"Actually," he heard Magnus mutter, sounding like he was trying to fight off his laughter, "I know _exactly _what I'm going to do with you…"

Alec couldn't help it; he moved his hands away from his face so he could look up at Magnus. Something about Magnus's tone of voice was making him feel…curious.

If he'd been more confident like Izzy or Jace, he might even have raised an eyebrow at that comment and made a flirty, suggestive comment in response. It was too bad that he was nothing like his siblings and that he was currently feeling more than a little nervous.

"I'm going to make you tea, and breakfast, and get you another glass of water," Magnus told Alec as he walked towards him with a slight sway to his hips. "And then you're going to stay here for a little while, and rest, and then, maybe, if I'm lucky, you and I are going to have a discussion about 'going for a drink sometime', as you suggested last night…"

Magnus definitely looked a little nervous at that final comment, Alec noted; something about his expression was raw, vulnerable.

It was just enough to give Alec some sort of hope, even though he hardly dared to believe it.

"R-really?" Alec asked him, as his heart started to beat fast.

"Really," Magnus confirmed. "If you want to, that is…"

Magnus definitely looked uncertain now, and Alec knew that he was waiting for something; something from Alec. Alec had to be the brave one now after all the stuff he'd said last night.

"I uh, I meant what I said last night," he muttered. "Just…maybe I didn't say it in the most subtle way," he added as he tried to shrug and grin apologetically, even as yet another blush crept to his cheeks. "And, I...um, I'm sorry," he said, even as Magnus waved his apology away. He knew that he could easily deny all the other stuff he'd said last night before he'd asked Magnus out for drinks; pass it all off as drunken rambling, but he kept quiet. He decided that he should maybe think about _why_ he wasn't choosing to deny any of it-not though now; he was still feeling a little groggy.

Luckily, Magnus smiled at his words. "I'm glad to hear it," he said. He still looked like he was still trying not to laugh at the memory of a few other things Alec had said.

"Yeah, uh, me too," Alec replied, wishing that he could have come up with a more eloquent response.

The two of them stared at each other for a moment, before they both smiled and looked away.

Alec rolled his eyes. Now he _definitely _felt like he was back at middle school. Any moment now, the two of them were going to start passing notes to one another with the words '_Do you like me?' _written on the front, complete with 'yes' and 'no' check boxes. But surprisingly, Alec was loving every minute of it. For Magnus Bane, he would tick 'yes' every single time.

His cheeks still felt flushed, but in a good way now, and his heart was beating faster in his excitement.

"Oh, and," said Magnus suddenly, making Alec look up at him again, "I'm not going to date Camille…"

Alec had his suspicions that Magnus had only very recently made this decision. Maybe that's where he'd been heading, last night, before Alec had drunkenly stumbled over his threshold.

"Just in case you were…wondering," said Magnus, as he ran his hand over his ear and raised an eyebrow as he looked at Alec.

Alec wondered if Magnus was trying to be coy; maybe he was trying to flirt with him.

"I, uh, I'm glad to hear it." Alec repeated Magnus's words from a few moments ago, even though he wasn't as smooth as Magnus was when it came to delivering certain lines.

"Good," said Magnus, and after they had smiled at each other again, Magnus headed to the kitchen to make Alec breakfast.

Alec settled back down on the couch with a grin on his face; he wasn't sure whether he was smiling from happiness or relief. Maybe both. He wrapped Magnus's blanket around his body, feeling more comfortable than he had felt in a long time.

* * *

On Saturday evening, Magnus felt more than a little content as he stood outside on his balcony. The stars seemed to be shining brighter than usual in the sky, and Magnus grinned to himself as he alternated between texting Catarina and Ragnor and taking sips of the fancy cocktail he'd made for himself.

Magnus worded his messages to his friends in a way that would make it seem like he had been smooth, cool and eloquent when it came to asking Alec out, but Catarina didn't seem to be buying it: _You can tell us all the embarrassing details next week! _she told Magnus in her reply.

Magnus couldn't help laughing a little as he texted his friends back, promising them that he would tell them as he much as he could when he next saw them.

He couldn't stop smiling. He'd had a nice afternoon with Alec-they'd had breakfast together, and they'd planned their upcoming date, and then Alec had taken a nap, looking so beautiful wrapped up in Magnus's blankets. The two of them had laughed together as they'd talked about their failed attempts to ask each other out, finally sharing the whole story with one another. Alec had even given him a hug before he left the loft, and Magnus had loved being held in his arms again.

And, he and Alec Lightwood were really going on a date next Friday evening-dinner and then drinks at a local bar; Alec was also taking Magnus as his plus-one to Izzy's birthday party next Saturday; Alec actually liked him back; this was really happening.

Magnus felt happier, lighter, than he had felt in a long time; he felt like he was walking on air.

He had just finished his cocktail when he was startled by the sound of a knock on his front door.

He frowned a little in confusion as he went to answer the door-he wasn't expecting visitors this evening.

He was pleasantly surprised when he opened the door and saw Alec standing out in the hallway, looking both handsome and adorable dressed in a plain grey sweater and black trousers.

He looked refreshed, well-rested, but he also looked a little awkward, a little nervous, and he shuffled around from one foot to the other.

"Magnus," he mumbled, before Magnus could even offer any sort of greeting, "I uh, I realised that there was something I forgot to say earlier…"

Magnus couldn't help it; he felt a little apprehensive. Had Alec changed his mind? Had he shown up with some big confession? Had he remembered that he had already agreed to go on a date with somebody else, or something along those lines? Had Alec's parents forbidden him from dating Magnus?

Before Magnus's mind could run away with itself, going over all sorts of terrible possibilities, Alec took a step closer to him, the typically intense expression on his face.

He opened his mouth as though he was about to say something very important, but then he shook his head, like he'd changed his mind about something, or he had been struck by a better idea…

He took a final step towards Magnus, his movements rapid, and then he _took Magnus in his arms and kissed him, full on the mouth_.

Magnus widened his eyes in surprise for a second-he hadn't expected a kiss today-but then he became so caught up in how wonderful the feeling of Alec kissing him was that it became difficult to think straight.

As though acting on instinct, Magnus started to kiss Alec back. The two of them were making out by Magnus's front door, and it was perfect. Time seemed to stand still. Everything except Alec started to look blurry.

Alec continued to hold him close, and Magnus felt like their bodies were made for one other.

Magnus parted his lips to give Alec better access; his whole body felt a little tingly. Their kisses were rapid, almost frantic. Alec might have told Magnus that he was inexperienced, but he definitely seemed to know exactly how Magnus liked to be kissed.

Magnus felt like he'd been waiting for _years _to be kissed like this; like this was the reason why no other relationship of his had worked out. The kiss felt like the perfect conclusion after months of dancing around each other and smiling and blushing whenever the other was around. Everything had been leading up to this moment.

All to soon, Alec stopped kissing him.

Magnus couldn't help groaning in disappointment, and he caught a hint of a smug grin on Alec's lips. He looked pretty pleased with himself, even though he was blushing.

Alec continued to hold him close, running a hand gently over Magnus's face.

"_You're _beautiful," Alec whispered in the narrow space between them, as he looked Magnus right in the eye. The way he was looking at Magnus, it was almost with a look of wonder on his face.

Magnus blinked a few times in shock, trying to fully absorb Alec's words.

That's what Alec had come over here to tell him, Magnus realised, before he'd been distracted by the idea of getting his lips on Magnus's. Maybe he'd been waiting to say it for a while-or more accurately, since Magnus had told Alec that _he _was beautiful yesterday.

So that's why he'd looked so nervous, when Magnus answered the door. Magnus would almost have been amused by this realisation, if he hadn't been thinking about how this was the loveliest moment of his life. Nobody had ever told him that he was beautiful before, and Magnus realised that he rather liked it, especially when it was Alec who was saying those words to him.

"Thank you, Alexander," Magnus whispered back to him with a grin, running his hands softly through Alec's hair in return.

Maybe his reply sounded a little lame, but he wasn't sure what else to say. It was more than a little distracting, being this close to Alexander Lightwood. He knew that his expression was probably much softer than he had allowed it to be for a long time. He couldn't close himself off to love; not anymore. His heart was fully open now.

He lifted his head a little, inviting Alec in for another kiss-Magnus had a feeling that he'd be doing that a lot over the next few weeks.

Alec seemed to get the hint. His mouth was back on Magnus's again, before lips started to explore necks and jawlines. Magnus was loving every moment of it.

Perhaps they had both made a mess of making the first move, but it had been worth it, to get to this moment, for the two of them to make 'the second move' into each other's arms.


End file.
